For the past three years, supply chain hiccups have left chefs grasping at straws. Even ingredients like eggs, once very reliable, have become scarce and begun to inflate in price. Unfortunately, supply-related issues seem likely to continue for the foreseeable future.

“Everyone has endured major challenges when it comes to the supply chain,” says Michael Slavin, vice president of culinary and menu innovation at Houlihan’s, a casual-dining restaurant brand under the Landry umbrella. “Product availability, product quality, and record high costs have affected all of us across the board. It’s a daily battle.”

For these reasons, menu innovation is difficult, but it’s still a necessary part of running a restaurant. Earlier in the pandemic, guests may have had more patience for shrinking menus, higher prices, and less-than-stellar service. After all, these issues were widely publicized and consumers were thought to be in forgiving moods. That patience may be running out, Slavin says.

“Guests are craving unique and interesting menu items,” Slavin says. “That stands in direct contrast to the previous two years of menu reductions and more of the same old stuff. Your customers are likely getting tired of that by now. When they dine out, they want something new.”

Matt Harding, executive chef of The Piada Group, owner of 49 fast-casual Italian restaurants and one full-service restaurant, agrees with Slavin. Harding contends that what diners are looking for goes beyond great food. For this reason, versatile, reliable ingredients that can guarantee interesting menu options are essential. Harding suggests that pasta, then, is the perfect way for chefs to meet the moment.

“One thing I know will never go out of style, like a good classic suit, is hospitality,” Harding says. “I’m a huge advocate for getting back to what hospitality used to mean. And when diners go to a restaurant, they’re looking for comfort and that satisfaction to help ground them in their days. For a lot of people, pasta does just that. And that’s great news for chefs, because pasta truly is the ultimate canvas.”

A Menu Must-Have

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When Harding’s restaurant group conceived of Piada, a fast-casual concept based on serving the authentic Italian street food that inspires its name, pasta wasn’t on the menu. It quickly became clear that an Italian concept in the U.S. could not afford to leave pasta off the menu—guests were craving it when they came to Piada. After all, Datassential points out that 84 percent of American consumers say they “love” or “like” pasta.

“I think pasta is so popular because it invokes a tremendous amount of nostalgia,” Harding says. “You’ve got a story and a feeling you get when you order pasta at a restaurant. It’s just that emotion and comfort we could all use more of.”

Pasta dishes now make up the majority of what Piada sells. In fact, the concept’s top-selling item has become a “build-your-own” pasta bowl—even guests at Piada see pasta as the ultimate culinary canvas.

Conveyer of flavor

So why is pasta such a great base for innovation? One of the reasons is its versatility. Each cut lends itself to being paired with different sauces, opening up a world of possibilities, says chef Michael Boyer, food and beverage product development chef at Nordstrom Restaurant Group.

“For example, I’m obsessed with the mouthfeel of Barilla’s new Al Bronzo product line,” Boyer says. “It has such a clear differentiation from other pastas with its custom blend of the highest-quality semolina, produced with bronze die, forming an extra-rough texture which collects and captures sauce and flavor so well.”

Boyer notes that this is the very reason why pasta is often at the heart of a burgeoning trend—or, rather, is the perfect place to begin when seeking to showcase a new trend. A chef can always find a cut of pasta that perfectly soaks up the trend’s distinct flavors or ingredients.

For the most recent National Pasta Month—celebrated globally each October—Boyer leaned into the idea that different types of pasta can soak up a diverse range of flavors and ingredients. Nordstrom featured on its menu a suite of successful dishes using the Al Bronzo line, including a Butternut Squash and Pancetta Penne, Spaghetti & Meatballs, and an Asian inspired Sweet & Spicy Steak Noodle dish.

Labor Saver

The supply chain isn’t the only ongoing challenge in the industry. Slavin notes labor is an issue that never really went away—it may be discussed a bit less now, he says, as restaurants are making do with fewer team members. Part of the reason that is even possible in the first place is owed to vendor innovation: Slavin points to Barilla’s “No Boil” Lasagne Chef sheets as something that has made pasta dishes that much easier on restaurant kitchens with fewer cooks.

“It’s such a positive, useful upgrade on what was previously a notoriously temperamental process,” Slavin says.

Chef Latisha Rodgers, culinary instructor and program operating manager with Levy Restaurants at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, has found success with Barilla Frozen®, a pre-cooked solution from the pasta company. “Using Barilla Frozen for our mac-and-cheese concepts makes us so much more efficient,” says Rodgers. “Then we spend the valuable prep hours we save on the scratch items, where it really counts.”

Slavin, Harding, Rodgers and Boyer all use Barilla’s pastas because of innovations like these. That, and the brand’s reputation for carrying quality, widely available products with long shelf lives and hold times. Barilla all but guarantees no matter what a chef is going through, they’ll always have an old faithful standby.

“I’ve brought Barilla with me at every stage of my career,” Harding adds. “I know I can count on it to deliver a high quality experience to the guest, every time.”

For more on Barilla’s pastas, visit Barillafs.com.